Читать книгу Marriage Of Convenience: The Andreou Marriage Arrangement / The Replacement Wife - HELEN BIANCHIN - Страница 10

TWO wedding days three years apart, Alesha mused as she put the finishing touches to her make-up. Each so completely different they were at opposite ends of the spectrum!

Having done the full bridal thing with designer dress, four bridesmaids, flower girl, page boy, the church, several hundred guests, the tiered wedding cake and exclusive reception with her marriage to Seth, the prospect of a civil ceremony by a celebrant held in the grounds of the groom’s Point Piper home with Dimitri’s lawyer and Lacey as witnesses seemed a breeze by comparison.

So why was she a mass of nerves?

‘You look gorgeous.’ Lacey’s compliment was genuine, and should have acted as reassurance. Instead the nerves inside Alesha’s stomach twisted into a tighter ball.

‘Thanks.’

Lacey looked at the overnight bag resting at the end of the bed. ‘Is that all you’re taking with you?’

‘It’s enough for the weekend.’

‘Darling,’ Lacey chided. ‘You’re moving in with Loukas. Permanently. You need to pack.’

‘I’ll shift some of my stuff tomorrow.’

‘Hello?’ The admonishment held a degree of musing scepticism.

Arguing with Lacey was a losing battle as her friend flung open wardrobe doors, drawers, and quickly transferred a varied assortment of apparel into a suitcase.

‘Okay, we’re out of here.’

Second thoughts? She had a few! Primarily, relating to her sanity!

Yet as tempting as it would be to bail out, there was the overriding knowledge that she’d agreed to this marriage. What was more, she’d signed legal documentation confirming it.

So suck it up, Alesha chastised as she negotiated traffic and headed towards suburban Point Piper, with Lacey following close behind.

Loukas’ home was positioned behind a high wall and entered between stylish gates that opened onto a curved driveway leading to a double-storeyed mansion whose imposing entry was guarded by two massive ornamental-studded wooden doors.

She brought the BMW to a smooth halt behind a late-model four-wheel drive, and Lacey parked directly behind her.

No sooner had she cut the engine than both entry doors opened to reveal Loukas in the wide aperture.

His tall, broad-shouldered frame attired in an immaculate dark suit appeared slightly intimidating as he moved towards her.

There was little she could do to control the sudden fluttering inside her stomach as he held open the door for her to emerge.

‘Alesha.’ His close proximity, his dark watchful gaze merely accelerated her nervous tension, for soon, within the space of an hour or less, she’d enter into a legal union with this man…and her life would change.

Concern as to just how it would change affected her more than she imagined possible.

Would Loukas suddenly assume another identity within hours of the wedding…as Seth had?

The mere thought was enough to send an element of fear shivering the length of her spine, and the smile she summoned appeared over-bright and failed to reach her eyes.

Did he notice? She hoped not.

The faint sound of an engine caught her attention, and she turned slightly as a vehicle slid to a halt behind Lacey’s car.

‘The gang’s all here.’ She kept her voice light as Lacey joined them, followed closely by Dimitri’s lawyer.

Loukas ushered them into a spacious foyer whose floor featured beautiful marble tiling in a large circular star-burst design, above whose centre an exquisite crystal chandelier provided prisms of light.

Antique tables, exquisitely crafted chairs, wall sconces, paintings, graced an area whose focal point was a sweeping double marble staircase featuring ornate wrought-iron balustrades leading to an upper floor balcony that divided into two separate galleried wings showcased by matching ornate wrought-iron balustrades.

‘Come through to the lounge,’ Loukas directed with ease. ‘Everything is set up there.’

Alesha moved on autopilot, so acutely conscious of his presence at her side that she barely noticed the beautiful sofas and chairs, the amazingly high ceilings.

Instead she focused on the small table with its exquisite lace-edged linen cloth, the votive candle, a delicate spray of cream orchids, and a leather-bound Bible.

Introductions complete, the celebrant conferred with the lawyer, exchanged small talk, then she opted to begin the ceremony.

You can do this.

As an affirmation, it didn’t begin to scratch the surface!

Almost as if he knew, Loukas captured her hand and held it loosely within his own.

To prevent her sudden need to escape? It was a moot point!

Alesha heard the solemn beautifully spoken words, and on some level she took them in, and managed to recite the vows that united her with Loukas in matrimony…aware his vows held a calm solemnity that was lacking in her own.

He slid a wide diamond-studded ring onto her finger, surprised her by lifting her hand and brushing the ring with his lips, before offering a ring for her to slip onto his finger.

He was prepared to wear a wedding ring?

Her fingers shook a little as she slid it on, and his hand covered hers as he used a little pressure to slide it home.

‘It gives me great pleasure to pronounce you husband and wife.’ The celebrant bestowed the gathered foursome a pleasant smile. ‘And introduce Alesha and Loukas Andreou.’ Loukas lifted both hands and cradled Alesha’s head, then he covered her mouth with his own in a fleeting sensual caress.

Oh, my. There had to be some explanation for the slow curl of sensation unfurling deep within her. Almost as if her body was at variance with the dictates of her mind.

How could she even begin to think what it would be like to have him invite a more intimate touch, to feel his hands on her body, his lips tasting an evocative trail, teasing, encouraging her response.

The question had to be could he succeed? When she’d left Seth she’d locked the door to her emotional heart and thrown away the key. And vowed never to allow another man to get close.

Alesha became conscious of Lacey’s laughter as she was enveloped in a hug; the voiced congratulations from the lawyer, the celebrant; Loukas’ hand resting against the back of her waist before he released her to open the champagne cooling in an ice bucket.

Smile, a silent voice prompted. You’re supposed to be happy. The future of Karsouli is secure, and your future is safe…if safe could be attributed to the man whose ring she now wore.

So play the game expected of you. Pretend. Haven’t the past few years provided plenty of practice?

Consequently she accepted a flute of champagne, smiled at the toast Lacey proposed to happiness and a blessed future, and managed to nibble a proffered canapé from a silver platter presented by Loukas’ housekeeper, Eloise.

The celebrant took her leave, and conversation flowed with ease for a while until the lawyer indicated a pressing engagement and Lacey followed suit as she pressed a light kiss to Alesha’s cheek before turning to Loukas.

‘Take good care of her.’

‘I intend to do so.’

Together they moved through the foyer to the main entrance where Loukas opened the door.

‘Drive carefully.’

‘Always.’

There was the sound of heels tapping along the driveway, the beep of a security remote, followed by the solid clunk of a car door closing and the purr of an engine as Lacey drove away.

Alesha watched as the car eased down the driveway, saw the accented red of brake lights as Lacey slowed at the gates, then the car disappeared from sight.

She was extremely conscious of the man who stood at her side, his easy movements as he closed both doors and activated the security system.

The house…mansion, she corrected, seemed incredibly large, not to mention an unknown entity, for, although she assumed the bedroom suites were situated upstairs, she had no idea precisely which wing contained the master suite.

Loukas indicated the curved staircase. ‘Eloise will have transferred your bag upstairs.’

‘Is this the part where you give me a guided tour?’

‘You’d prefer to explore on your own?’

She crossed to the staircase and began ascending the wide marble stairs, aware he joined her. ‘I might get lost.’

‘It’s quite simple. Personal suites and home office situated to the left, guest suites to the right. Ground floor, formal and informal lounge and dining rooms, media, home theatre, kitchen, utilities. Lower floor, gym, entertainment room, indoor pool. Outdoor pool. Self-contained flat for staff over detached garages.’

They reached the gallery and turned to the left. ‘It’s a large home for one man.’ An observation that incurred his steady appraisal.

‘A man who has very recently acquired a wife,’ he reminded silkily.

Loukas opened a set of double-panelled doors to reveal a spacious master bedroom, containing two king-size beds.

So he’d kept his word.

She told herself she should be relieved…and she was. Except sharing the same room implied a certain intimacy with which she felt distinctly uncomfortable. There were two separate en suites, two dressing rooms and a recessed alcove furnished with two comfortable chairs and standard lamps.

It was, she had to admit, incredible. Luxurious, with spectacular views over the harbour to the cityscape. Magic at nightfall when the city was lit up and varied coloured neon flashed with advertisements atop many of the inner-city buildings.

He shrugged out of suit jacket, dispensed with his tie and loosened the top button of his shirt.

For a moment she caught her breath at his intention, and he glimpsed the fleeting apprehension evident before it was quickly masked.

‘You might want to change into something less formal.’

She reminded him of a skittish foal in an unfamiliar environment…one who had experienced fear, possibly damage, with every reason to mistrust.

‘Eloise has unpacked your bag.’ Loukas indicated the dressing room she would use. ‘Tomorrow we’ll shift the remainder of your belongings.’

‘I can manage on my own.’

‘You won’t need to.’

So give up the independent streak, accept two pairs of hands are better than one, and some masculine strength for the bag-carrying is a good thing.

Slipping into something more comfortable depended on what items of clothing Lacey packed, and she crossed into her allocated dressing room to check the meagre assortment.

Jeans didn’t cut it, but tailored trousers with a cotton top would do.

Minutes later she emerged to find Loukas standing close to the wide expanse of glass taking in the panoramic scene.

The white shirt accentuated the impressive breadth of his shoulders, and his shirt cuffs had been folded back to rest midway up his forearms, lending a casual air.

Deceptive, she knew, for he could move with the silent stealth of a primitive cat and reduce an adversary to speechlessness with a few sententious words.

She watched as he turned towards her, and the breath caught in her throat.

He was someone she’d known for a number of years, as the son of Dimitri’s closest friend, a man whose company she’d shared with her parents’ friends and business associates on a few occasions at various social events. Instinctively aware, even then, that when he played, he played to win…in business, and with women.

Through circumstance he’d won Karsouli…together with her as part of the package.

‘Shall we go eat?’

Food wasn’t foremost on her mind, although she sipped excellent vintage wine, sampled succulent morsels from no less than three courses, while engaging in meaningless conversation.

The economic state of the nation and the world’s foremost leaders made for interesting debate and carried the hour with relative ease. Something for which she was immensely grateful.

‘Do you still have regular contact with Lacey?’

Alesha wondered if Loukas’ query related to genuine interest, or merely a shift to the more personal.

‘Regularly,’ she answered lightly. ‘We share dinner each week, occasionally take in a movie. Go shopping together.’

‘I seem to recall you were a keen advocate of tennis. Do you still play?’

‘Not as often as I used to.’ She took an appreciative sip of fine wine. ‘Do you still travel extensively?’

‘My father prefers to remain in Greece these days.’ He affected a slight shrug. ‘Andreou has offices in London, Milan and New York, and I alternate between each of them while overseeing the main office in Athens.’

‘And now you’ve added Sydney to the equation.’

One eyebrow lifted in sardonic query. ‘That still bothers you?’

‘I have no alternative but to accept it.’

‘It’s a little late to change your mind.’

‘How are your parents? Your sister Lexi?’

‘They’re well. My mother is on various committees, which consume some of her time. Lexi designs handcrafted jewellery and has a studio in the Pláka.’

‘And your Aunt Daria?’ It was a polite query and resulted in a musing smile.

‘She remains a force to be reckoned with.’

Plain-spoken to the point of bluntness, Alesha remembered as she recalled a visit to Athens with her parents several years ago when they’d spent time with Angelina and Constantine Andreou.

‘That appears to take care of family and friends,’ Alesha managed lightly. ‘Should we move on to the more personal? The master breeding plan, perhaps? I trust you’re aware the male sperm determine the sex of the child?’ She spared him a pseudo-intelligent look. ‘I refuse to bear any blame if we produce only girls.’

Alesha glimpsed his faint smile. ‘Why, when their mother is a fine example of what women can achieve?’

‘An attempt to soften me up for the inevitable consummation?’ She was heading down a dangerous path, and she silently damned her runaway tongue.

‘The chemistry we share bothers you?’

Bother was too tame a description!

‘And chemistry is an automatic guarantee for satisfaction between the sheets?’

What is the matter with you? a silent voice screamed inside her head. Are you insane?

‘Did your ex gift you that?’

She silently damned herself for metaphorically opening a vein. ‘You expect me to answer such a question?’

He was silent for several seconds…seconds during which she found it difficult to hold his gaze. ‘You just did.’

It would be so easy to tell him to go to hell, and she almost did. Except sanity ruled her tongue and she maintained a dignified silence. He had depth of character, a silent strength that had been lacking in Seth…although she hadn’t seen it at the time.

Blinded by what she imagined to be love, Alesha decided with cynicism. Seth had played his part well…as she’d soon discovered.

This, her second wedding night, was so vastly different from that of her first wedding when she’d been surrounded by family and friends, and filled with love for her new husband and barely containing a breathless excitement for the night when she and Seth were alone.

A faint bubble of cynical amusement rose in her throat to remain unuttered.

She’d thought being in love resolved everything, except it hadn’t. The magical wedding night she’d imagined didn’t happen due to her new husband imbibing vintage champagne a little too freely. And the sex had been…less than she’d imagined it would be. Afterwards, when she had refused to give in to his demands that they upgrade their home and lifestyle, and allow him an unlimited expense account, the sex had become a punishment she had endeavoured to avoid…to her cost. And she’d walked away, vowing never to be taken in by another man in her lifetime.

Yet here she was, a few hours into a second marriage she didn’t want to the man of her father’s choice. Sharing the same room in separate beds…for how long? One night…two?

After all, in the dark of night, sex was just…sex. No big deal. Right?

So why did she feel like a cat treading hot bricks?

Because instinct warned she was way out of her depth with a man of Loukas’ calibre. There was somethinga bout him, an intrinsic, almost raw sexuality that bordered on the primitive.

Intoxicating, brazen, shameless.

A part of her ached for the experience, while sanity cautioned she might not survive with her emotions intact.

It was almost a relief when Eloise entered the dining room to clear the table, and Alesha elected tea in preference to the strong espresso Loukas favoured.

How soon could she conceivably offer an excuse and retire to bed? Another hour or two? Did Loukas have anything planned?

A tiny bubble of laughter rose in her throat. Sure…like they’d settle comfortably in the media room and watch a movie on DVD?

Resorting to cynical humour was a defence mechanism she chose to employ against an increasing onset of nervous tension.

‘I have a few international calls to make.’ Loukas studied her expressive features, and it was almost as if he knew the pattern of her thoughts. ‘Maybe an hour or two ahead of me on the computer as the business day begins in Europe.’

Her relief was palpable, and she only hoped it wasn’t evident. ‘Sure. Go for it.’ She stood and moved away from the table, aware he did the same, and she preceded him from the room, then headed for the upper level.

Tomorrow she’d familiarize herself with the house and its several levels…but for now she ascended the curved staircase and made her way along the gallery to their suite.

Her choices numbered many: a leisurely soak in the spa-bath; slipping into bed with a book—if she could locate one. Sliding between the covers of one of the two beds and attempting to sleep.

As if she’d be able to do that, when every nerve in her body would be alert and tuned into Loukas’ appearance.

Two beds…would he sleep alone, or choose to share her own?

Hell. She didn’t even know which bed was his.

What if she selected the wrong bed and he took it as an invitation to share?

Dammit, since when had she become so ambivalent?

Since her separation and divorce from Seth, she’d regained her independence, healed, and forged a reputation as a confident savvy young businesswoman who’d earned her rightful position as Dimitri Karsouli’s colleague.

Very little, if anything, fazed her. Certainly not a man of any calibre…except Loukas.

She’d stayed away from him, careful not to show so much as a glimmer more than mere friendship. Aware, even from the first moment she’d met him that he was more than she could handle.

Light and dark, mesmeric…possessed of a sensual power that electrified and frightened. Because she instinctively knew he’d want it all…the heart of a woman, her body, her soul.

And she couldn’t be that woman. Didn’t want to be absorbed so totally that there was nothing left except him.

Now, she didn’t know. So much had changed. She had changed.

No longer did she believe in love. At least, not the happy-ever-after enduring kind that lasted a lifetime.

Nor did she intend to place her trust in any man.

Once burned by flame, it was the height of foolishness to toy with it again.

For timeless minutes she stood taking in the superb furnishings in the spacious suite. Despite the luxurious accoutrements there was an underlying air of comfort that held appeal. The muted colours aided relaxation, and she wondered if they’d been a deliberate choice by the interior decorator responsible for creating the refurbishment.

Decisiveness had to be a plus, she perceived as she collected sleepwear and moved into the en suite where the spa-bath beckoned invitingly.

Mellow, she coveted the slow slide into the kind of relaxation that aided an easy sleep. Hopefully way before Loukas entered the room, so she wouldn’t be aware of his presence until morning…and maybe not even then, if he rose early to make use of the downstairs gym.

Heaven, Alesha breathed as she sank into the warm bubbling water and positioned her head against the cushioned rest.

Ten minutes, she allowed…then she’d switch off the jets, release the water, dry off, and slip into bed.

It was almost midnight when Loukas closed down the laptop and muted the desk lamp. He’d spoken to Constantine in the Athens office, liaised with two colleagues in Paris, another in Rome. There’d been data to peruse to which he added his input, and the stock markets.

He lifted his arms and stretched, easing out the kinks in his shoulders, then he sat in contemplative silence for several long minutes before rising to his feet.

In the kitchen he filled a glass with chilled water, drank it down, then he checked the security system and moved quietly upstairs.

The master bedroom suite bore the softened light from muted lamps, and it took only a brief glance to determine both beds were empty.

A slight frown creased his forehead as he crossed to the en suite, knocked quietly, and when there was no answer he opened the door.

For a moment he stood taking in the scene…the soft pulsing jets in the spa-bath, the slender feminine form whose facial features in repose looked peaceful, almost childlike and bare of artificial enhancements.

Her soft, slightly parted mouth almost begged the touch of his own. Fine, almost porcelain skin moulded delicate bone structure, a perfect nose, and long natural eyelashes fanned out from petal-like eyelids.

He moved quietly towards the bath and switched off the jets, then he collected one of several large folded bath-towels and spoke her name.

There was no sign she heard him, and his gaze skimmed over her slender curves, the soft swell of her breasts with their tender peaks, the delicate waist, flat stomach with its slim gold pin with a strategically placed diamond attached to her navel. A cheeky jewellery accessory that winked and gleamed beneath the water’s surface.

He felt the stirring of arousal, and banked it down.

‘Alesha.’ His voice was firm, and he caught the faint flutter of her eyelashes. ‘Wake up.’

He saw the moment his words penetrated her subconscious, the sudden upwards sweep of her lashes as she came awake, and the stark mix of startled surprise and fear in the depths of her eyes the instant before she recognized him and gained the reality of her surroundings.

‘It’s after midnight,’ he said quietly. ‘You fell asleep.’

Loukas glimpsed her attempt to control the fleeting expressions chasing her features, saw the embarrassment change to indignation as she automatically used her hands to shield the vulnerable parts of her body.

‘Leave the towel and go…please.’

He was tempted to release the water, scoop her out and wrap her in the towel, then carry her to bed. His.

Except when he took her, it would be because she wanted him, not an act she conceded out of duty or mere compliance.

He might be many things, and he’d been called on several…but he stood by his word.

So he did as she requested and closed the door behind him, then he shed his clothes, took a cool shower, and slid between the sheets to lie with his arms crossed behind his head.

He watched idly as she emerged into the bedroom attired in cotton sleep trousers and a singlet top, looking impossibly young.

A slight smile widened his generous mouth as she avoided meeting his gaze, and he waited until she slipped beneath the covers before closing the lamps.

‘Goodnight.’ His voice was an indolent drawl in the darkness, and he only just heard her muffled response.